The Shadow's heir

Morning, when it came, brought a painfully hot blaze of sunshine in through the high, narrow window. Laela woke up feeling sick and dried-out. She rolled over and groaned.

It felt like a hangover, but she was sure she hadn’t been drunk the night before. .

She lay on her back in the unfamiliar bed, feeling sorry for herself for a good while before she noticed something odd.

Dawn had come and gone, judging by the amount of sunlight, but Oeka hadn’t woken her up to demand food.

Laela got up in a hurry, suddenly afraid. If Oeka wasn’t commanding her to bring meat at once, then something was badly wrong. Maybe she’s sick, she thought as she fumbled for her clothes. Or worse. .

Her ceremonial costume wasn’t where she’d left it. She groped around, sick and confused, and nearly screamed when she realised there had been someone standing silently by the table the entire time.

“Who are you?” she yelled, trying to cover her nakedness with her hands.

The stranger bowed low. “Please, don’t be alarmed, my lady. I am your servant. Here, take these clothes.”

They were unfamiliar-a strange, bead-encrusted blue thing that looked vaguely like a tunic that had had most of it cut away, and a skirt made of the same material. “I ain’t wearin’ these,” said Laela. “Where’s my dress?”

“They’re Amorani clothes, my lady,” said the strange person who’d offered them. “I was asked to give them to you. Every Amorani woman wears something like it.”

“Well.” Irritated and confused, but desperate for anything to cover herself up, Laela put on the skirt. The other piece took some fumbling, but she worked it out even though it only covered her breasts, a tiny patch of her back, and not much else. “I can’t go out in public wearin’ this; I’ll look like a whore!”

The stranger’s expression didn’t change. “I assure you that nobody in the city will look twice, my lady. Here, I have breakfast waiting for you.”

Sure enough, there was food on the table. Scowling, Laela sat down and picked up something that looked like a cake. “Who’re you then?”

The stranger wore nothing but a plain white kilt, a piece of cloth around the chest, and a heavy collar.

Thanks to that and the shaved head, it took Laela a good while to realise that the slave was a woman.

“My name is Inva,” the woman said. “I have been assigned to be your guide and personal servant during your stay here, my lady.”

It was deeply bizarre to hear a clearly Northern woman speak with a broad Amorani accent. “So you’ll be showin’ me around the city, then?” said Laela.

Inva inclined her head. “If it pleases you, my lady.”

“I ain’t sure I like the idea of bein’ waited on by another Northerner wearin’ a collar like that,” Laela muttered. “Where’s Oeka?”

“Your partner has been fed and is being attended to by her own servant, my lady,” said Inva.

Laela blinked. “She got a. . good gods.”

“My lady?”

“Nothin’.” Laela went back to her breakfast. Eating made her feel better.

A few moments later, Oeka swaggered in. She had another slave following her, and for a moment Laela didn’t recognise her. She was wearing an elaborate headpiece decorated with brightly coloured feathers and beads, and had a gold sheath on her beak, studded with jewels.

Laela stood up. “Oeka! What the. .?”

The small griffin sat on her haunches and raised one forepaw, flexing the talons. They’d been painted gold. “At last, you and I receive the treatment we deserve!” she said, without a trace of irony. If griffins could grin, she would have been doing so.

“Well,” Laela said weakly. “Ain’t that special.”

“Indeed,” said Oeka. “Finish your food quickly; I am eager to explore the city.”

Laela almost lost it at that point; Oeka looked so much like a feathered Queen holding court with her personal assistant beside her that it was all she could do to keep a straight face.

“The Emperor has asked that we see to your every wish, my lady,” Inva said smoothly. “I will arrange your hair for you when you have finished eating.”

She made good on that promise, and in spades. Laela had expected her to brush it, which she did-after she’d spent what felt like half the morning combing it. After that, she combed it some more, adding some oil that smelt like ancient spices and made Laela’s hair lie flat for the first time in its entire existence. After the oil came what looked like an entire basket of gold and coloured glass beads.

Then came the make-up. And then Laela had to sit there while her nails were filed and stained red with some kind of crushed stone. Inva did the same thing to her toenails, after she’d washed both feet with scented water. Then she was finally allowed to put on a pair of fine leather sandals. And a gold anklet, and a heavy gold necklace. And a ring with a huge blue stone.

Laela, who normally hated pampering, was so overwhelmed by all this that she sat there meekly and let Inva do her work with the speed and grace of someone who’d done it hundreds of times before.

Eventually, though, she said, “All right, now can we go?”

Inva smiled. “You look magnificent, my lady.” She paused. “And yes, we may go now.”

Laela caught a glimpse of herself in a mirror on the way out, and nearly swore with the shock. “That ain’t me,” she mumbled. “Tell me that ain’t me.”

Oeka was already leaving. “Come! We have a city to impress!”

A few moments later, she and Laela had left the building with their escorts, and the city of Instabahn was before them.

Laela stepped out into the street, all embarrassment over her new outfit forgotten.

Amoran was a dry country, beaten down by the same blazing sun that had been so exhausting while they were out at sea. By now, Laela was used to the heat, and she took in the paved, sand-covered walkways, the strange trees that looked like erect griffin-tails, and the people-ye gods, the people. The place was packed, with Amorani citizens everywhere. There were shops and stalls lining the streets, a little like in Malvern, but most of the trading seemed to be taking place in the open air. Cloth canopies provided some shade. People crowded among them, arguing over prices, carrying boxes of cloth or fruit, driving goats, leading small donkey-carts, or just trying to get through the press of bodies to somewhere else.

It looked like a nightmare, but to Laela’s amazement, she and her companions had no trouble at all. People stood aside when they saw Oeka, bowing low and muttering respectfully. Inva and her fellow slave went ahead, each one carrying a pole decorated with feathers and tassels.

Laela kept close to Oeka’s side, remembering Arenadd’s advice. She didn’t have to pretend to look important for very long.

Inva had been right-her new outfit didn’t make her stand out. Or at least not in the way she’d expected. The people around her were as scantily dressed as she was; the men in light kilts, the women more or less the same, aside from some extra cloth to hide their breasts. Laela’s own clothes stood out by virtue of being far gaudier, and once the surprise had worn off, she lifted her chin and strutted along beside Oeka, enjoying the sights as a lady on a day out should. She even started to enjoy all the stares being directed at her.

The buildings were different here, she noticed. Their roofs were flat-but of course, they didn’t have to shed snow. Laela wondered if it ever even rained here. All of them were made in the same way as the hall; they looked like stone, but they were smooth, without a single join anywhere. Laela finally caved in and asked Inva outright why they looked like that.

Her guide looked surprised. “They are made from clay,” she said. “Bricks, with a coating of clay.”

“Oh.” Laela felt slightly stupid.

The other people in the street were quick to stand aside, but that didn’t mean they stayed away. Plenty of them followed Laela, trying to get her attention and holding up various bits and pieces they obviously wanted her to buy. At first she ignored them, but one man finally caught her eye-he came up unexpectedly on her left, thrusting a piece of jewellery at her. Oeka hissed and made a move to chase him away, but Laela looked at the offering and paused. It was an elaborately crafted necklace-all twisted gold tendrils like a metal vine with many-coloured